Gates for graving docks



April 2, 1963 c. J. FOSTER 3,083,539

GATES FOR GRAVING Docxs Filed may 27, 195e FIG. WITNESSES. mvENToR.

3,633,539 GATES EUR GRAVING BOCKS Christopher 5. Foster, Sands Point, NX. (44 Whitehall St., New York, NX.) Filed May 27, 1953, Ser. No. 738,220 3 Ciaims. (Cl. 61-64) My invention relates to closure gates for graving drydocks and it has for its special object to provide a foldable gate structure that may readily be removed for repairs and painting and afterwards reseated.

ln all submerged pivoted gates, weirs and wickets where long and limber plate sections are to be removed for repairs, divers must lirst remove the pivot pins before the plate sections can be removed and after the repairs have been made, divers are again required to do considerable jacking and forcing in reseating the plate sections, as such handling always distorts a long and limber plate section.

My invention specifically provides an apparatus and a method whereby such handling distortions are readily eliminated by the weight of the gate pressing the pivots down into the exact fit of the submerged, flared and forked bottom earings, and a water pressure created on the gate presses the lower and side parts of the gate against the dry dock seat and the upper part thereof against a detached row of aligned upright supports. In all prior drydock gates where a watertight seal must be achieved on the horizontal bottom sill as well as on the vertical side seats of the dock, very beamy caisson gates have been used up to the time of my discovery of the practical value of adding a horizontal line of supports for the upper part of the dry dock gate, thus obtaining a four side support for the lightweight rectangular plate gate.

My invention has also for an object to provide a vertical dry dock gate with a series of uprights having their lower ends pivoted in open slots of forked ground supports out of which they may be lifted by a crane when required for inspection and repair, and afterwards reseated into the slotted supports. Finally, my invention provides a series of bracing supports for the center portion of the vertical gate, matching the series of uprights. The outside water pressure, therefore, pushes the vertical gate against the braces which are adapted to be folded down and outwards when the water pressures are equalized on the two sides of the vertical gate.

ln the drawing, FEGURIE l is a vertical sectionm elevation of the gate showing it pressed against the braces by the outside water pressure. 'FIGURE 2 is a front elevation of a fragmentary section of my preferred gate, and FIGURES 3 and 4 show the details of construction of the top of the brace supports.

My invention has for its main object to provide a plate gate which is hinged to the doel; bottom or floor and braced against separate hinged struts to withstand the outside water pressure, the purpose being to permit the folding of the gate outwards and downwards from a closed vertical to an open prone position; with the hinged struts or braces following the movement of the gate in sliding contact along the inner side of the gate as it drops to rest finally on top of the gate and in proximity thereto to permit a ship to pass out and in and out lof the dock.

ln the drawing where like reference characters designate corresponding parts, l denotes the closed entrance end of the graving dock and Z denotes my preferred closure gate thereof. The gate 2, comprises the plating 3, that is attached to the uprights 4, which are provided with pivots 5, at their lower ends that protrude downwards beyond the plating. The pivots 5 nest in the open slots 6, which are provided irl the forked base support members 7 shown shaped to facilitate the insertion of the pivots. The diagonal braces 8 against which the gate 2 is pressed the pipes or guides l5 also being lowered.

Patented Apr. 2, 1963 by the outside `water 9, when the graving dock is dewatered, consists each of the main compression member or strut 10, one end of which is hinged to a base Ill, with the other end connected by the pin 2t) to the crosshead l2, against which the gate upright 4, presses, and in turn this crosshead is connected by the same pin 20 to lugs 2l on the yoke t3 that presses against the stopper 14 to which two hinged tension pines 15 are welded and against which the yoke i3 presses. The stops 11i are all fixed to the guides l5. Each yoke 13 is adapted to slide up and down on the pipes l5, while each crosshead 12 is adapted to slide up and down along the closure gate 2, as each main compression member l0 falls downwards between the two tension pipes 15. The lower ends of the tension pipes are pin-connected to a forked base 16, to allow the compression brace member to fold horizontally between the two tubular tension members.

As many struts l@ and their associated parts will be employed as may be needed.

The dotted lines in FlGURE 1 indicate the relative position of the gate and the braces when the gate is folded dat on the dock door.

The folding operation of the gate is as follows:

The graving dock is first flooded until the outside and inside water lines are at the same level, whereupon the gate is pulled over by available pier cranes, not shown on the drawing, and gently lowered to the bottom until the gate fetches up against a pile stop 17.

ln the meantime, the pin-connected braces lo follow the gate as they are propelled by gravity downward when the gate folds, and each crosshead l2 slides along the gate until the gate has reached its prone bottom position with the compression member lil folded prone on top thereof between the two tension pipes l5 of the brace, When the gate is raised, the operation is reversed as the braces are raised together with the gate until they fetch up against the Stoppers at the end of the tension pipes. I prefer to provide means for lock-zing the braces i5 in raised position when the gate is removed and preventing the folding down of the braces prematurely. The preferred locking means comprise two vertical plates l?, welded to each yoke i3 with a pin 19 locking the yoke to a projection 22 on the stop i4.

I do not wish to be understood as limiting my claims to the structure shown as it is evident that modifications of my device may be undertaken without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention.

I therefore, claim as my invention all such alterations and modihcations that properly fall within the scope of my invention and the terms of the following claims:

l claim:

l. ln a graving dock having a door, sides and a closed end, a gate of rigid plating for the opposite end, uprights attached to the gate pivot bearings open 'at the top and attached to said iioor for receiving the lower ends of said uprights, pivot pins mounted on said ends of the uprights and pivotally supported on said open bearings, guide means in pairs disposed on the side of the gate towards said closed end in close proximity to the inner face of the gate and extending downward substantially parallel thereto, each pair of guides having a stop secured to the tops of same and diagonal braces on the side of the guide means towards said closed end slidably connected to said guide means, and base members attached to said floor to winch said braces and said guide means are also pivotally connected at their lower ends so that the gate, guide means and braces can be folded outwardly away from said closed end to lie substantially flush with the door of the dock `as the dock is being flooded to permit a ship to enter and vacate the dock, the braces and guide means then' being adjacent 'said inner face with the br-aces and guidermeans supported on the inner face of the'uprights.

2. A closure gate yfor a graving dock having a oor, the gate comprising rigid plating, upright members attached tosaid platiiig, pivot pins attached to'said members, open bearings attached tothe door to support said pivot pins, guides dis-posed in pairs adjacent the inner face of the upright members and pivoted to the oor at a point substantially elevated above s aid` open bearings and spaced therefrom inwardly of the dock, each pair of :guides having a stop secured to the tops of same, a yoke below each stop 'and slidable on said guides, a cross-head attached to each yoke below said yoke and movable therewith, a strut adjacent said inner face pivoted at its upper end to the cross-head and pivotally secured at its lower end to the floor of the dock, at a point substantially level with the pivots of said guides and spaced therefrom inwardly of the dock, said gate, said guides and said strut being foldable downward and outward of said dock to lie Hush with Vt-he door of the dock to permit a ship to enter or vacate the dock, vsaid struts and said guides being sup-` ported on the crosshead adjacent said rinner face of the upright members which presses freely against the .crosshead for support against further-pivotal movement of the gate in the direction of the drydock.

3. A closure ,gate for a graving dock having -a oor and comprising rigid plating, upright members attached to said plating, pivot pins att-ached to said members, open bearings attached to the floor to support said pivot pins, vguides disposed in pairs adjacent the inner face of the upright members and pivoted to the oor at a point substantially elevated above said open bearings and spaced therefrom inwardly of the dock, each pair of Vguides having a stop secured to the tops-of same, a yoke below each stop and slidable on said guides, a cross-head attached to each yoke below said yokeand movable therewith, a strut adjacent said inner face pivoted at its upper end to the cross-head and pivotally secured at its lower end to the floor of the dock at a point substantially level with the pivots of said guides and `spa-eed therefrom inwardly of the dock, said gate, said guides and said kstrut being foldable downward and outward of said dock to lie ush with the floor of the dock to permit ya ship to enter or vacate the dock, said struts and said guides being supported on the crosshead adjacent-said inner face of the upright members which presses freely against the crosshead for support against Jfurther pivoted movement of the gate inthe direction of the drydock, and means for connecting 4the crosshead and the yoke to the guide stops when necessary to prevent the folding of said guides and struts.

References Cited in the iile of this patent FOREIGN PATENT 

1. IN A GRAVING DOCK HAVING A FLOOR, SIDES AND A CLOSED END, A GATE OF RIGID PLATING FOR THE OPPOSITE END, UPRIGHTS ATTACHED TO THE GATE PIVOT BEARINGS OPEN AT THE TOP AND ATTACHED TO SAID FLOOR FOR RECEIVING THE LOWER ENDS OF SAID UPRIGHTS, PIVOT PINS MOUNTED ON SAID ENDS OF THE UPRIGHTS AND PIVOTALLY SUPPORTED ON SAID OPEN BEARINGS, GUIDE MEANS IN PAIRS DISPOSED ON THE SIDE OF THE GATE TOWARDS SAID CLOSED END IN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THE INNER FACE OF THE GATE AND EXTENDING DOWNWARD SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL THERETO, EACH PAIR OF GUIDES HAVING A STOP SECURED TO THE TOPS OF SAME AND DIAGONAL BRACES ON THE SIDE OF THE GUIDE MEANS TOWARDS SAID CLOSED END SLIDABLY CONNECTED TO SAID GUIDE MEANS, AND BASE MEMBERS ATTACHED TO SAID FLOOR TO WHICH SAID BRACES AND SAID GUIDE MEANS ARE ALSO PIVOTALLY CONNECTED AT THEIR LOWER ENDS SO THAT THE GATE, GUIDE MEANS AND BRACES CAN BE FOLDED OUTWARDLY AWAY FROM SAID CLOSED END TO LIE SUBSTANTIALLY FLUSH WITH THE FLOOR OF THE DOCK AS THE DOCK IS BEING FLOODED TO PERMIT A SHIP TO ENTER AND VACATE THE DOCK, THE BRACES AND GUIDE MEANS THEN BEING ADJACENT SAID INNER FACE WITH THE BRACES AND GUIDE MEANS SUPPORTED ON THE INNER FACE OF THE UPRIGHTS. 